Clutch



E; S.'FL0ETER.

l CLUTCH. APPLICATION FILED AUG-2, 1920.

1,380,789. lPan-,mmm:rune7',1.921.

5 3 16 9 V/ //Af/ 1f if ll l2 3 1718 8 I 1l 27 'm/92 TTORNE f FREDERICK S. FLGETER, 0F SAGNAW, MICHEGAN.

CLUTCH.

naa-aree.

Specification of Letters IiPatent.

Patented June 7,

Application filed. August 2, 1920. Serial No. Gili/17.

T0 @ZZ w 7mm t may concern:

Be it known that l, Fnnnnnrcr; llnonrnn, a citizen oi' the United States, residing at Saginaw, in the county of Saginaw and State oi Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clutches; and l do hereby declare the following to be a lull, clear, and exact description ot the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

rlhis invention relates to devices for actuating friction or dental clutches and the like to throw the clutch members into and out of engagement, and the improvement pertains more particularly to mechanism whereby the clutch may be quickly engaged with power- Ylul gripping action, or released with only a small amount oi"- relative movement between the two clutch members.

The object or my invention is to provide a latch-actuating handle and means operated thereby, so a vnged that when the handle is in a straight outwardly projecting position, the two clutch members will be in engagement, or vice versa, and when the handle is in a sidewise or tilt d position the clutch members will bev out oi' engagement, or vice versa.

@ne adaptation orn my invention is in the operation oi friction or dental clutches on the aprons of metal-working lathes and theV like.

lleretofore to throw the iced mechanism into or out of gear, it has been customary to tighten a knurled nutV or small wheel on the apron oi the lathe; but very com monly these nuts become worn, or would bind so that the lathe operator ir quently tightened the nut with a wrench or hammer, thereby losing time or damaging the lathe in an effort to secure eective gripping of the friction clutch by which the lathe feed is actuated.

ln adapting my improvement to the apron of a lathe, l employ a handle or lever in stead of the above-mentioned nut.

l/Vhen the handle projects horizontally or axially with respect to the axis ot the triction clutch, the clutch is engaged, but when the handle is tilted away from its axial position, in whatever direction, it will disenga-gc the clutch.

With the foregoing and certain other objects in view which will appear later in the specification, my invention comprises the devices described and claimed and the equivalents thereof.

nthe drawings, Figure l is a part longitudinal sectional View of a clutch with my tightening device vapplied thereto, the clutchoperating handle being shown in its axial position, and the clutch members engaged.

Fig. il is a similar view, showing the han die in its tilted position and the clutch members disengaged.

8 is an end view of the adjusting link and inner ball.

.in the drawings, l represents a gear ha'vu ing a clutch member 2 and an integral cylindrical stem 3.

The other clutch member 4:- is provided with a hollow cylindrical stem 5 tted outside the stem 3. This outer hollow'stem 5 extends preferably over only part or' the length of the stem 3, the remainder of stem 3 being surrounded by a corresponding. hollow stem 6 or' a ball seat cup 7, the ends ot the hollow stems 6 and 7 abutting, as shown in the drawings.

Received within the ball seat l is a hollow ball 8. his ball has an internal part-spherical ball seat 9, in which is seated a ball l0.

rlhe center of ball l0 does not coincide with the center ofthe surrounding ball 8, but is eccentric thereto, asrshown in Fig. l.

rllhe internal ball l() is connected to the end or stem 3 by a link ll, one end of the link being fitted with a ball-and-socket oint l2 in the end of stem 3, the other end of the link being threaded and screwed into a threaded aperture 18 in ball l0.

Since balls 8 and l0 are located eccentrically with respect to each other, if the outer ball 8 is turned in the ball seat cup 7, link ll will thereby move slightly lengthwise and will operate to release or tighten the clutch members 2 and 4l.

To so turn ball 8, l provide an operating handle la having a threaded boss l5 received in the threaded aperture of ball 8, the aperture being large enough to permit inserting ball y10. rllhe end ot the threaded boss l5 is also formed with a part-cylindrical cavity to tit the surface of ball 10. The handle may be prevented from unscrewing by means of a key 16.

When the handle is in the position shown in Fig. l, that is, axial or approximately so, with respect to the stem 3, the two balls 8 and l0 are in such position that the link l1 and stem 3 are drawn to the left to their 2 isof/eo fullest extent7 as shown in Fig. l and the clutch members 2 and i are consequently clamped together.

lllhen the handle la is tilted away 'from its approximately axial position7 the relative positions of balls il and l() are changed and the link ll and stem 3 are forced to the right, thereby disengaging` the clutch members 2 and 4l, as shown in 2.

To compensate or wear in the bearing surfaces and to afford proper adjustment of the clutch movement with respect to the movement of the handle l ovide means 'for lengthening or shortenin the link ll, shown in Figs. 2 c d E, where ll' the outer end of' linla;V l: this end preferably beingl oi" polygonal lerici and ol smaller diameter than the diam-et r ot the body oi link ll.

Ball l is formed with a polygonal recess 18, and within recess 1S and outside the polygonal end i7 of stem ll is inserted a hollow polygonal sleeve l), this sleeve acting as a loch to prevent the linlr 1l turning while sleeve 19 is in place.

To adjust the working,l length of link ll, it is only necessary to screw it into the ball to the desired adjusted position and then drop the polygonal sleeve into place to prevent further relative turning` oi the ball and sleeve.

rlhe threaded boss l5 on the handle lil prevents displacement o' the sleeve 19.

By the means above des" eed, l have produced a clutch-operating; device that is simple, relatively inexpensive and capable of exertinggreat power with a very small amount of movement ot the clutch devices and adapted to be operated by a handle which by its position indica at a glance whether the clutch is in or ont of engagement, that is to say; when the handle projects straight ont, or substantially so, the clutch is engaged, but in any other position the clutch is known to be out of engagement.

rlhe handle may be moved in any direc` tion away from its central position to disengage the clutch, namely, upwardly, downwardly, or sidewise whichever is most convenient to the operator.

' Having thus described inyinventiomwhat l claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. ln combination, a clutch-member having` an integral stemD a linlr having one end swiveled to said stein.,l aball i'ixed to the other end or" said linlr, a hollow ball in closing1 said nrsat-mentioned ball and eccentric thereto7 an operating handle secured to said hollow ball, a cup Yharmed with a'seat to receive said hollow ba l7 a second clutchmember, a hollow cylindrical connecting said cup and said second clutch memier, for the purposes-set forth.

2. ln combination, a clutch-member havn ing an integral stem, a linlr havingl one endv swiveled to said stem, a ball adjustably secured to the other end of said hnli a hollow ball inclosing` saicL nist-mentioned ball andV eccentric thereto7 an operating-handle secured to said hollow ball, a cup formed with a seat to receive said hollow ball, a hollow cylindrical stem on said cup7 a second clutchmember, a hollow cylindrical stein on said second clutch-member andabutting against the stem of said cup.

8. ln combination7 a clutch-member having` integral stein linli secured at one end to said stem, a ball adjnstably secured to said linlr, a hollow ball inclosing said inst-mentioned hallV and eccentric thereto, a cup formed with a seat to receive said hollow ball, a second clutch-member, a stem connecting' said cup and second clutch-member, and means for roi'zating` said hollow ball with respect to said nist-mentioned ball, for the purposes set forth.

ln testimony whereof, l affix my signature.

FREDERlCK S. FLOETER. 

